When I was a little girl, my mother nicknamed me Lee Lee Bee Bee.
When I heard my mother call me Lee Lee Bee Bee, the whole world felt right.
"Lee Lee" became the name of this organization, Lee Lee's Life Lessons. But "Bee Bee" still needed a home. Now she has one.
Meet Bee Bee, our signature river otter. From the mountains to the sea, joy travels with Bee Bee.
Bee Bee carries that same feeling: the safe, loved, all-is-well feeling I want every survivor, thriver, and caregiver to find with us, even in the middle of the storm.
Why a river otter?
River otters never stop playing. Long after other animals settle into "grown-up" life, otters keep sliding down muddy banks, chasing each other through the current and tumbling just for the joy of it. Play isn't something they grow out of. It's how they live. That is the heart of Let Us Play™.
River otters are also made for changing waters. They move easily between land and river, through calm days and rough ones. Their sensitive whiskers help them find their way even when the water is murky. Anyone who has walked through cancer knows what it is to swim in murky water, and Bee Bee is a reminder that we can still find our way.
And river otters are rarely alone. They live and travel in family groups, and a group of otters on land has the happiest name in nature: a romp. That's what we hope every gathering, retreat and circle feels like: a romp of people who understand.
What Bee Bee stands for
Play: joy isn't a reward for getting through hard things. It's part of how we get through them.
Presence: an otter floating on her back has nowhere else to be.
Belonging: we navigate the water together.
Resilience: storms come, and so does still water.
Where you'll find Bee Bee
Bee Bee will be popping up across our programs: at retreats, support gatherings, in our materials, and right here on the blog. Watch for her tips, reminders to play, and small lessons for the river of life.
The little girl my mother called Lee Lee Bee Bee grew up, faced storms, and learned what she most wants to share: even on the hardest days, we can find our way back to all is well.
Come as you are. Thrive as we go.
